Seattle Mariners reliever Matt Festa throws during a game against the Houston Astros on May 27, 2022, at T-Mobile Park. Lindsey Wasson-Imagn Images

Former Seattle Mariners Reliever Matt Festa Let Go by Texas Rangers

Originally posted on Seattle Mariners on SI
By Teren Kowatsch | Last updated Jan 7, 2025 3:45 PM ET

The Seattle Mariners have yet to make a single move in free agency this offseason, much to the chagrin of M's fans everywhere.

Despite this, the American League West has been one of the more active divisions in baseball during the offseason.

The Houston Astros, Athletics, Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels have all made trades or transactions to better their rosters this winter.

And the Rangers recently made another move that's resulted in a former Seattle reliever being out of a job.

Texas signed 11-year veteran bullpen arm Chris Martin to a one-year contract. To make room for him on the 40-man roster, the Rangers designated former Mariners reliever Matt Festa for assignment.

Festa was originally drafted by Seattle in the seventh round of the 2016 draft. He pitched 2018-19 with the team, was kept in the minor leagues for 2020-21 and made 61 total appearances for the Mariners from 2022-23.

In total, Festa posted a total ERA of 4.32 during his time with Seattle across 89 appearances and struck out 102 batters in 93.2 innings pitched.

Matt Festa (@ESU_Baseball) and the @Mariners look to keep it rolling in the second half of the MLB season starting today!

Check out of the final out from Festa's first career save last week against the Texas Rangers#FestaFridays x #WhereWarriorsBelong pic.twitter.com/ev1aQkkPTr
— ESU Warriors (@ESUWarriors) July 22, 2022

The Mariners released Festa after 2023. He signed with the San Diego Padres and lasted less than two months before they released him too.

Festa ended up signing with the New York Mets and made one outing before they cut him. He finished the year having made 18 appearances for Texas. He posted a 4.37 ERA with 23 strikeouts in 22.2 innings pitched in his outings with the Rangers.

Texas has made several adjustments to the roster this offseason to try and return to a level of contention. And with the Astros expected to regress in 2025, the AL West might be even more competitive next season for Seattle than it has been in recent years.

This article first appeared on Seattle Mariners on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: